If you like something…

Author Notes: Curry noodles are a favorite food. I know everything is my favorite food, but Thai street food, especially the kind sold off a boat floating dock side, has to be really good food. A big batch of sauteed Asian greens would be a nice side. - thirschfeld - thirschfeld

Food52 Review: This terrific recipe delivers – in spades – everything we’ve come to expect from the generous offerings of thirshfeld: a perfect balance of flavors, crystal clear instructions, and an extraordinary end result. Pay close attention to the warning at the end of Step 2 , where Mr. H wisely notes that you may be frying more scallions than those initially sliced. In fact, the only thing I’d change in this recipe is to tell the cook to double the quantity of scallions at the outset, as those crispy onion-y bits are outrageously tasty and wickedly addictive. . . which also happens to describe rather nicely the entire dish. ;o) - AntoniaJames

Serves 4

1pound lo mein noodles or thin spaghetti, cooked according to directions and cooled

vegetable oil

3 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced

1teaspoon cumin, ground

1tablespoon red curry paste

1tablespoon madras curry powder

2 1/4cups unsweetened coconut milk

1 1/2cups chicken stock or unsalted chicken broth

1tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon tumeric

2tablespoons fish sauce or more to taste

1tablespoon fresh lime juice

1 lime quartered for garnish

1/3cup scallions, sliced for garnish

1pound raw shrimp, peeled and deveined

1cup shallots, sliced into rounds

1tablespoon corn starch

2tablespoons flour

salt

Heat a large pot over medium high heat. Add a half inch of oil to the pot. Season the shallots with salt. Combine the flour and the cornstarch and then add it to the shallots. Toss the shallots so they become coated with the flour. Shake off excess flour.

When the temp of the oil is 325 fry the shallots until they are crispy. Don't let them brown to much or they will taste burned. Remove them from the pan to a paper towel lined plate and season them with salt. Put them somewhere where you won't be tempted or you will find yourself having to fry more.

Drain the pot of oil. Rinse and dry it. Place it back over medium high heat.

Combine the garlic, curry paste, madras curry powder, tumeric and cumin. Add 2 tablespoons of oil to the pot. Add the garlic and spices. Sear the spices just until fragrant and then add the stock, fish sauce, sugar and coconut milk. Bring to a boil and them reduce the heat to a simmer.

Simmer for about 20 minutes to get the flavors to meld. Taste, it is probably going to taste salty but not to worry when you add the noodles it will cure itself of this issue but now would be the time to add more fish sauce of you think it needs it. Add the shrimp, let them cook to almost done and then turn the heat to high. Add 1 tablespoon of lime juice and bring the sauce just to a boil then turn it off.

Place the noodles in a strainer and run hot water over them to warm them. Drain them and divide them among 4 bowls. Sauce the noodles with shrimp, curry sauce and then top with shallots and green onions. Serve with a lime on the side.

I have made this once a month since finding this recipe! I substitute chicken; cooking it with the spice paste and then simmering with the rest of the ingredients. LOVE the fried green onions and sometimes fry some jalapeño rings with them to add to the garnish.

bonafide delicious!!! has the hallmark of all great recipes, it's brilliance allows for endless improvisations. going to add greens or napa cabbage next time with some julienned carrots and cucumbers on top. thank you for another fantastic recipe to put in the family weeknight rotation

My daughter and I made this for lunch today. We love Thai food and we (including my husband and daughter) concluded that this recipe competes with the best of the best we have ever eaten.
Thanks for the great recipe. Will be making this again soon (maybe with jasmine rice).

Made this again last night using chunks of cod instead of shrimp. Outstanding!! This is one of our favorite recipes of FOOD52 ever (and we have tried, and I make on a regular basis, many FOOD52 recipes). Thank you, thirschfeld. ;o)

Shrimp, like beef or any other main food item comes in many different sizes, flavors and textures. There is no mention of the species of shrimp in this resicepe; the best "farmed." shrimp would be a monodon, (Kobe beef) commonly know as Black Tiger Prawn and I would suggest size of 26/30 pieces per kg. You can now find tigers, fresh, never frozen or slacked out, grown in extensive farms not intensive ones requiring many additives to ensure good health. Of course you can go for wild caught and that is a whole different story but don't let anyone tell you the white, grey or glass farmed prawn is superior, it is NOT! It is grown in very dense populations and needs a lot of help to survive..that species is Vannamei

Wow. This is one of the best dishes I have ever made....and I cook a lot. Wonderfully complex and balanced - the heat of the curry paste with the subtle sweetness of the coconut milk and oh my, those shallots. Too good!

I eat a vegetarian diet so I substituted marinated, broiled tofu for the shrimp and white miso paste for the fish sauce. My dining companion, who is not vegetarian, said he wouldn't change a thing.

I would like to ask a question about the coconut milk because i am not sure. I have a quart of coconut milk in the fridge that I use on cereal or to drink its a lot thinner than the coconut milk you get in the can. Which coconut milk is the correct one to use in this recipe?

I used the canned but if the carton has a good cocnut flavor I am sure you could sub it in. Just maybe don't use as much as the recipe calls for. If you have extra virgin cocnut oil this would be a good place to use it too

just wanted to tell you again how much we love this sauce. I made it again last night with some mussels and it was fantastic. Really balanced flavors with enough spice for my daughter and not too much for me. It's a perfect weeknight meal. Thanks again!

this was very good! tastes just like a dish called Curried Chicken Noodle Soup that we get at our local Burmese restaurant. Theirs obviously has chicken rather than the shrimp and is garnished with the fried scallions as well as wedges of hard boiled egg. Both renditions are delicious and it's nice to now have a recipe with which to tinker depending on what I'm craving. thank you!!

Made this tonight and my daughter deemed it "restaurant worthy." But then, I knew it would be tasty! Like AJ, wasn't sure the difference Madras curry might bring to the flavor, but I went with the curry blend I have. Was thinking that Madras might have red pepper too? Really delicious!

The only thermometer I have is a digital meat thermometer, but it says that it measures up to 450 degrees. Can I use this to measure the temp of the oil? or is there a trick to test if the oil is the right temp for the shallots?
Definitely don't wanna mess up these crispy shallots!! Thanks in advance for your advice :)